Propane users face record-high prices

12:49 PM,
Jan. 29, 2014

Patrick France of France Propane Services in Schofield pulls the hose from his truck before pumping 100 gallons of propane Monday into a tank at a home in rural Wausau. France is rationing his supply of propane as prices across the Midwest hit record highs.

Written by

Chris Jones
| For Daily Herald Media

Rural residents across central Wisconsin are being forced to dig and dig deep to keep their furnaces running as another wave of arctic cold grips the Upper Midwest.

A combination of low supplies and high demand has driven the price of propane through the roof this year. In the past week, the price of a gallon of propane from France Propane Service in Schofield jumped from $2.40 to $5.25, and the U.S. Energy Information Administration said Monday that prices have reached record highs.

The crisis prompted Gov. Scott Walker to declare a state of emergency Saturday and to release $8.5 million ...